BP Files Federal Lawsuit Against some Kentucky Stations

With prices soaring, how do you know the gas in your car is the brand you think it is? That question is fueling a legal fight between B-P and a company that runs hundreds of gas stations. The Wisconsin company owns gas stations in several states including Kentucky. Now, the global gas giant B-P claims those stations weren't always selling its fuel and may have broken the law.

Across the bluegrass, some of the familiar green and yellow B-P signs are coming down. It's not by choice. A federal lawsuit requires it. The lawsuit alleges what came out of the pump at some Bulk Petroleum gas stations was not B-P brand or B-P quality gas as required by contract.

B-P says the fuel may be misbranded or commingled fuel (a mixture of B-P brand gas and other cheaper fuel) and it might not be in compliance with state law which could be dangerous to your car.

Ted Sloan with the Kentucky Department of Agriculture says "a few years ago, bad motor fuel got in the pumps in Louisville and caused damaged to a number of engines."

The state agriculture department deals with issues like this, but it can't check every gas pump or every gallon of gas sold.

Sloan says "The expense has grown while budgets remained flat. What that means is we've tested fewer and fewer samples over the years until recently only testing 500 to 600 per year."

B-P itself tested fuel from the Wisconsin company's Sephardsville station and those results confirm the allegations.

This doesn't affect every B-P station, only the handful of stations in central Kentucky owned by this WI company.

The stations in question are still open the only difference is what comes out of the pump is no longer B-P brand gas

Selling off brand gas isn't against the law, but it violates the contract between B-P and the stations that carry its name.

We know the two stations in Frankfort will become Marathon stations in the next couple of weeks. The others in the area forced to drop the "B-P" brand aren't releasing what they'll be changing to but the change over should be completed soon.

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